


Making the Team

by idontlikegravy (subcircus)



Series: The Immortal Ianto Jones [3]
Category: Highlander: The Raven, Highlander: The Series, Torchwood
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-07-01
Updated: 2009-07-01
Packaged: 2017-10-03 19:05:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/subcircus/pseuds/idontlikegravy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amanda is settling into her new life at Torchwood, and Ianto is settling into Immortality, but there's just one thing - nobody's told Gwen what's going on and she's not happy about the new arrival in the Hub...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Making the Team

## Making the Team

 

The sound of blades clashing against each other echoed along the corridor as Jack hurried along it. Amanda and Ianto had taken to practising in an empty storeroom deep in the bowels of the archives, away from Gwen’s inquisitive eyes, but today Jack was cursing that it was so far from the Hub.

“From now on, one of you bring a com down here with you,” he panted as he came through the door. The two Immortals stopped their sparring and looked at the immortal.

Despite the serious reason for his arrival, Jack couldn’t help but use the moments as he caught his breath to appreciatively take in how good Amanda looked in the tight clothes she was wearing, and take the opportunity to admire the curve of Ianto’s recently acquired musculature, for once not covered by a suit.

“What’s wrong, sir?” Ianto asked, eliciting a smile from Jack. Despite everything, Ianto still called Jack ‘sir’ during work and occasionally in the bedroom, and Jack was beginning to think of it as affectionate.

“Couple of Blowfish popped up near St David’s,” he explained.

“On a Saturday night?” Ianto exclaimed, wide-eyed. He had already sheathed his sword and begun to walk forward. “It’ll be bedlam.”

“Yup,” Jack confirmed as Ianto reached him and they began walking back up the corridor.

“Do you think there’ll be civilian casualties?” Amanda asked as she fell into stride with them. Jack laughed.

“Not likely. Valley girls, closing time on a Saturday night in Cardiff? By the time we get there, all that will be left of those Blowfish will be sushi.”

 

*-*

“So,” Gwen said with a sly smile as they came back into the Hub. “Amanda survived her first case. Deserves celebration, that.”

Jack and Ianto followed her in, with Amanda close behind, trying to maintain her dignity. This was a feat, as she was currently covered in bits of fishy alien entrails, but she somehow managed it.

“Oh, darling,” she drawled “Don’t go to any trouble on my account. Coffee will be fine.”

Ianto stifled a snigger behind his hand and Jack smirked, but they both stopped when Gwen shot them a filthy look. Jack motioned to Ianto and the two disappeared towards Jack’s office.

Gwen stood with her hands on her hips, eyeing the newest member of Torchwood suspiciously. She hadn’t been happy to return from holiday to discover Amanda in the Hub, and, worse yet, Jack and Ianto seemed to trust her implicitly. She was fairly certain that Amanda and Jack had history together but, given Jack’s track record, that made things worse, not better.

Amanda pretended to be oblivious to the scrutiny and headed down towards the showers.

“I’m just going to get cleaned up,” she called over her shoulder. “If Ianto’s making, a latte would be divine.”

Gwen nearly growled in frustration. Not only was this woman swanning about like she owned the Hub, now she was insulting her coffee making skills! She stomped up the stairs to Jack’s office and burst through the door.

“Jack, that woman is driving me crazy!”

“Gwen, calm down. What’s wrong?” Jack replied. Ianto sat on the corner of Jack’s desk and stared at Gwen. He started to smirk, but Gwen shot that down with a glare.

 “I just…well I…” this time Gwen actually did grunt in frustration. “Look, I come back and this woman is here, acting like you’ve known her for years, and you both act like it too! I just don’t get why she’s here or why you trust her so much.”

 “Amanda’s a wonderful person, Gwen, and a great asset to the team. And, yes we trust her. You just haven’t had a chance to get to know her yet,” Jack replied. “Just give it some time, you’ll see.”

 Gwen just stood there, hands on hips and looked at Jack sceptically, but he had no more to say so eventually she gave up and returned to her desk.

 “I’m not comfortable lying to Gwen, sir,” Ianto began. Jack held up a hand to stop him.

 “I know, but we’ve been over this, Ianto. Telling Gwen only puts her in danger. If you or Amanda gets in a situation where we have no choice, then we’ll reveal the truth. But for now, it’s for her own good that she stays ignorant,” he explained and gently patted Ianto’s knee. Ianto pulled a face and stood up.

 “It doesn’t mean I have to like it, Jack,” he said and left the office.

 

*-*

 A few days later, Jack and Ianto had gone on a Weevil hunt, what Owen used to call ‘foreplay in the sewers’ much to everyone’s disgust, leaving Gwen and Amanda alone in the Hub. They were sat at their desks, Gwen staring intently at her screen and pretending that she wasn’t studiously ignoring the fact that Amanda was currently reading this month’s Vogue, when the Rift alarm sounded.

 Amanda looked up from her magazine and threw a questioning look at Gwen, who was already on her feet and picking up her gun.

 “Rift activity. Jack and Ianto are too far away, we should investigate,” Gwen explained. Amanda didn’t move from her seat. “Together,” Gwen added, making shooing gestures toward the exit. With a sigh, Amanda rose and headed toward the door. “Gun?” Gwen prompted.

 Amanda rolled her eyes before heading back to her desk to pick up the offending weapon, and then the two women went up to the surface.

 They arrived at the site of the activity about five minutes later; it was late Wednesday night, going into Thursday morning, so the Newport Road was quiet and Torchwood didn’t care about speed cameras. The retail park where the Rift had opened was deserted; there was no sign of life beyond the neon lights of the 24hr drivethru MacDonalds in the next section of the park. The two got out and looked around, but saw and heard nothing out of the ordinary.

 “Maybe nothing came through?” Amanda suggested as a scream split the night air.

 “We’re never that lucky,” Gwen commented as the two women ran toward the source of the scream. Gwen drew her gun and indicated that Amanda should do the same, but Amanda merely laid a ready hand on her holster. Gwen made a mental note of that, but now was not the time to comment on it. Later she might point out to the newbie that if you hesitate in Torchwood you end up dead.

 They rounded the corner of the building and spotted a young girl, dressed in a MacDonalds uniform, clearly on her way to or from work, lying on the ground. Standing over her was her exact double, even down to her clothes. The double had been leaning down towards the girl, but looked up at the approach of Torchwood. Its eyes flashed red and it bared fangs that were definitely not human.

 “Oh, marvellous. A bloody Nostrovite. I just hope it’s not a female,” Gwen said with a sigh and opened fire. The creature let out a feral growl and charged towards Gwen, despite taking a full clip of Gwen’s gun. “Oh crap, it’s female.”

 As the Nostrovite closed the distance between them, Gwen reloaded her gun and began to empty another clip into it. Amanda had drawn her weapon and was firing too, but neither gun was having any effect on the Nostrovite. It charged down Gwen, knocking her to the ground, winding her and sending her gun skittering across the tarmac.

The Nostrovite leaned pinned Gwen’s arms to the floor, it was useless to struggle, the creature was too strong. She couldn’t hear Amanda, nor see her in her peripheral vision, she only hoped that the newbie had a plan and hadn’t abandoned her to her fate. The Nostrovite began to lean in, its jaws widening in anticipation, saliva dripping down its teeth and onto Gwen’s chest. Something made it suddenly sit upright and, as it did, a blade came seemingly from nowhere and severed its head from its shoulders.

The dead Nostrovite was shoved to one side, and a hand reached down to help Gwen up. Gwen stood and saw Amanda, holding a sword in her other hand.

“Thanks. What made you think of that?” Gwen asked, looking down at the corpse.

“Beheading works on most things,” Amanda replied.

Gwen made a mental note to add that to the list of things she needed to talk to Amanda about, along with her reason for carrying a sword about. But right now, they were still on the job.

“Come on then, let’s get the tarp from the car,” she instructed, heading back to the SUV.

“Tarp?”

“Tarpaulin, for the body. Torchwood isn’t all glamour,” Gwen said with a smile. Amanda indicated the Nostrovite blood on her clothes.

“I noticed. Now, Gwen, darling, it’s becoming clear to me that I’m going to need a new wardrobe. You must show me all the good stores, first thing tomorrow,” Amanda said with a smile that Gwen could tell was genuine so she returned the smile and grabbed Amanda by the arm.

 “Amanda, it would be my pleasure.”


End file.
